How IBM quietly pushed out 20,000 older workers

Never be loyal to any company.

The fact that in the US you can sign deals that waive your legal rights is something that I've never quite understood. How is this legal? You're setting up a system that will always be used to ensure that powerful stakeholders will never be held accountable.

Kind of weird that they would do that considering they're name is basically synonymous with old.

An IT worker in their 40s is hardly obsolete or over-the-hill. People of that generation are the ones who built the Internet and created most of the IT infrastructure the world uses. The reason tech companies, and companies in general, try to shadily get rid of older workers is because people in their 40s are not as easy to exploit as new graduates who know nothing about the working world. That being said, a company that does this kind of thing usually ends up shooting itself in the foot. When was the last time something truly innovative came out of IBM anyways? Companies are only as good as they treat their staff.

I wonder if there's anyone watching this with an IBM computer

I'm 58 and I have almost always had multiple job offers, including many former employers.
Had a layoff only once for two weeks when I was young due to business turn-down.
The trick is to stay as current and knowledgeable in your field as possible - Look for trends in your field that may give you clues as to where it is headed. But do not limit yourself to one field either. Be willing to work sometimes unpleasant tasks without complaint - be flexible with work hours, assignments and tasks. Get as much training as you possibly can, especially outside your comfort zone. Your have to be willing to change jobs and employers often. Don't get pigeonholed into repetitive tasks.
I change companies on average about every 5 years on my own initiative in order to maximize wages, because I get the highest wage increases when I move to a new employer. Then try to save and invest some percent of your extra income.
Don't waste your money buying ready made meals, make your own coffee and sandwiches at home. Don't saddle yourself with crazy amounts of debt if possible.
Find your happiness outside work, work is to make money period ...
Think of your self as a product that the employer needs, and make sure you are the best product he can buy by continuously self-improving.
Be ready at all times for layoff! Don't let your employer define who you are and have no fear of a layoff.
I have purchased equipment that would help me start my own business if I had to, but I have not needed to yet so it will be re-sold upon my "retirement."
Do not be loyal to the company besides giving an honest days work, especially in an environment where it won't be recognized and rewarded.
You must look out for yourself and your family first.
(edit) And don't let yourself get too stressed out...it can lead to bad health and death and then you won't be any good to anyone...if your job stress affects your health you need to bail...

This is happening at a lot of companies across the world though. They lay off older, more experienced workers, on higher wages and then bring in these young naive over-enthusiastic workers, who do whatever they're told, for peanut wages, because they're so desperate to get their foot on the work ladder. People that have worked 30 years good service for their company, blemish free records & they're getting hauled over hot coals for minor discrepancies & given the option to either leave or be made to leave. There's no loyalty anywhere.

The workforce has dramatically changed over this generation. High tech jobs are set up so that employees work on short term projects and need to apply for a new job every few years. Good luck to an older employee who hasn't stayed on the cutting edge of his field. In America where health care is linked to an employer, people would be wise to cache earnings in anticipation of needing that cushion much sooner than they may like.

Never do your employer even a small favour. They only care about their margins. Never work anywhere for more than 5 years no matter what

What exactly does IBM do now? Watson was the last time I've heard anything from them

I'm surprised that this a surprise. This is happening across all industries and has since the 80s. The ball was all in business court and the vast majority of people have no effective redress regarding employment.

My fear is that my company thinks they can get someone else to do my job for much less money, as I have been with them 18 years. I am not scared because of my age, but it could appear that they are firing the old to replace with the young... But I see it as firing the loyal and well paid with cheaper labor.

It's not just IBM, every tech industry in the U.S. is doing exactly what IBM has been doing.
The median age of U.S. workers is 42.4 years old, yet for Google and most tech companies it is 29 years old.
I wonder if anyone has done any studies showing a correlation between high rates of age discrimination and suicide. Currently the highest rate of both are between the ages if 40 and 55.

This is a problem with capitalism. It cannot be fixed by saying age discrimination is not good. Profit is the number one motive of any company and will always remain so. If they can fire 20k workers and the fines are less than the savings, they will do it.
Capitalism is a inheranrly broken system, designed to create instability and siphon wealth out of the working class.

"IBM’s goal, it seems, is to flush out its older workforce and fill the void with fresher faces to reflect its younger “fiercest competitors.” According to the findings, IBM supposedly laid off older workers due to “out of date” skillsets, only to re-hire them as contractors to perform the same duties at a lower pay and no benefits."
Cutting hours and job titles to lower pay and benefits. The Wallmartification going beyond retail here.

Older workers have pensions and benefits, and actual experience in the field they work in.... Can't have that.

Oof, this hits close to home, as my father was one of those thousands when I was still in high school.

Ah isn't freedom good? You wouldn't want those pesky anti freedom unions?

The answer is money. Corporations don't care about values they care about value.

Employee liquidation: the (unfortunately) quintessential American🇺🇸 business practice.